Prasar Bharati OTT launch, private FM stations for small towns on cards  

Prasar Bharati OTT launch, private FM stations for small towns on cards  

Prasar Bharati’s over-the-top (OTT) platform that is likely to be launched at the opening ceremony of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on November 20 will be a game changer with its offerings, especially the archival material, a senior government official said here on Wednesday.

“We are hopeful [of starting the platform] on November 20 during the IFFI inaugural,” Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Secretary Sanjay Jaju said, explaining the public service broadcaster’s OTT will not just be streaming live channels but also hosting lots of archival material, including photographs from the Government of India Photo Division and several publications.

It will be a game changer with the service largely free and available at a small subscription. Prasar Bharati is in talks with many private television channels, he said in a media interaction at the India Game Developer Conference (IGDC 2024) that opened in Hyderabad.

On other initiatives of the Ministry, Mr. Jaju said the government is keen on small towns getting private FM radio stations since the latter offer a bouquet of services, including hyper local entertainment. The process of inviting bids from private players has been kickstarted, he said, adding there are more than 230 such small towns in the country with population of less than one lakh. The expression of interest (EOI) has been issued and auction process is set to be completed by January or early February.

Meanwhile, the 55th edition of the IFFI is scheduled from November 20-28. “This year too it will be celebrated on a grand scale - with huge participation of Telugu film industry. The IFFI will celebrate film makers and cine goers,” he said.

The Centre will be hosting World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in Delhi from Feb 5. Spread over five days, it will be a first such convergence event globally for broadcasting, animation, visual effects, new media, social media, OTT and films.